Lucky Secret
by Daemon McRae
Summary: As Ayano deals with one dramatic change in her life, nothing would prepare her for the next. And that's just fine with her. AyanoxKagami Oneshot


yahooAuthor's Note: I wanted to do a story for a much underplayed pairing. There's a little OOC on Ayano's part, here, but that's what fanfictions are for. After all, if we all played by the storyline, we'd just be rewriting the book, right?

Lucky Secret

"What do you mean you dumped him?" Misao exclaimed, her voice as loud as ever. Ayano shrunk into her chair, perfectly aware of the entirety of the class staring at her.

"Could you not be so loud? This is why I didn't want to tell you right away…" the orange haired girl said quietly. She fidgeted slightly, becoming more and more uncomfortable. It was the end of the day, and study hall, so she was only a few minutes away from going home. If only she could survive those few minutes.

"But, but, you guys were going to go to college together! Why did you dump my brother?" Misao's confusion only served to crank up the volume.

"Oi, Kusakabe, turn it down, would you?" Kagami said from the front of the room. She had just finished erasing the blackboard, and made her way over to her friends table. After arguing for a second with Misao, she focused on Ayano. "So what did happen?" she asked quietly.

"He… he wanted to get married. I told him I wasn't ready for that, and we started arguing… and…" she began to break down in her chair, crying into her uniform.

"Minegeshi-san," Kagami said quietly, placing a hand on her back. Ayano shivered slightly at the gesture. _No, no no. That's not it at all. You just aren't ready to get married._ "Well, if you need anything," Kagami added, "Just let us know. I know we're all going to be here for you."

Ayano let herself smile very slightly, and nodded. The bell then rang, and they made their way home.

Ayano wasn't used to taking the train. Usually, he'd pick her up from school, and they'd do something together. Maybe just go for a walk, or… no. She couldn't let herself think about him. It hurt too much. The train ride home was filled with confused thoughts and slight exhaustion. She hadn't gotten much sleep the night before. She was too busy thinking of all the things she wouldn't be able to do now.

Visit Misao. The tension between the two of them would be too much pressure on her family. And anyway, she was sure Misao would be too upset with her to want to hang out for awhile, anyway.

Go on dates. There were plenty of boys at her school, and even a few she liked, but there was always something missing. The more she thought about it, the more she realized _he'd_ been missing something, too. She racked her brain, but couldn't quite figure out what it was. Which just upset her more.

Once she got home, she resolved to try to focus on the positive things. She had more options now. She could spend more time studying for a good college. Or learning a valuable trade. She'd barely spent enough time on schoolwork to get good enough grades that her parents would let her date, but now she could really push for something big. Maybe Toudai. Her counselor had mentioned the possibility, if she only raised her grades a little more. But what would she do?

She had always dreamed about getting married in the future, him proposing on her graduation, getting married and going of to school together, then spending her days as a loving housewife. But the more she thought about it now, the more she was sure she couldn't be happy in that scenario. She needed to be doing something. Her logical mind chalked that up to another reason she had said no.

She struggled with the thought a little bit more, trying to think of some positive things that being single could do for her. She knew her parents wouldn't be happy. They'd become very attached to the Kusakabe boy, and her dad had been very excited that she'd be marrying a good man with good prospects. Well, what about her prospects? What did she want?

And the more she thought about that, the more another image floated into her head. One she'd been seeing for a few weeks.

"No, no, no! That's not it at all!" she told herself, shaking her head vigorously. She dove into her homework, looking to distract herself.

"Mom, dad?" Ayano approached her parents at the dinner table. They noticed quickly that she was being very sheepish, a trait they rarely saw in the confident young girl.

"Ayano, what's wrong?" Her mother asked sweetly. She looked up from her papers, her face full of concern.

"Um, there's something I need to tell you. It's about Kusakabe-kun," she sat down, and stared at the table.

"Honey, what's wrong? Did he do something to you?" Her father asked sternly. A strong-willed businessman, his automatic approach of 'Protect my family at all costs' kicked in swiftly.

"No, nothing like that. It's just… well, he proposed," she said quietly.

"Oh, that's wonderful! When's the wedding?" her mom brightened intensely, and Ayano started. "We have so much to do now! Are you getting married after graduation? Have you made plans? What kind of-"

"Mom, Mom!" Ayano pressed, trying to get a word in. "Mom, I said no." At this she risked a glance up towards her parents, and wasn't exactly surprised with their reactions. Her mother looked crestfallen, and her father didn't look like he knew what to do with the information.

"Oh… I see. Um, wh-what went wrong?" her mother asked quietly. She had liked the boy very much.

"I… I just don't think settling into the role of a housewife is what I'm meant to do," she rationalized. In truth, she still wasn't entirely sure what had driven her to reject him, but her parents needed to hear something. "I want to do more with my life, so I've decided to focus more on my studies. My counselor says that if I push hard enough, and spend a year in prep school, that I have a chance at Toudai," she forced a smile while she talked, if only to encourage her parents.

"Toudai? That's amazing! My little girl could be the next Tokyu-U graduate in the family!" her father exclaimed. He had always been proud of the college heritage on his side of the family. It's where he had graduated. As if noticing that that wasn't the only issue, he added. "Well, I'm glad you're making these kinds of decisions for yourself, Ayano. Truth be told, I didn't like that boy much. Too much energy. I think someone more level-headed would suit you better."

_Well, there's no one more level-headed than- no, new thought, new thought!_ Ayano yelled in her own head. "Well, thank you, father. Mom, are you ok with this?" she asked timidly, glancing back over to her mother.

"I guess I'll have to be. After all, if it makes you happy, I can accept anything," Minegeshi assured her daughter.

"That goes for me too! If you're doing something you love, than we won't stop you!" Her father added enthusiastically.

"Oh, thank you guys! You're the best!" Ayano exclaimed, and hugged her parents. And, for reasons unsure to her, a great wave of relief rolled over her. She let it pass without thought.

The days without her boyfriend were quickly becoming filled with other things. Since mentioning her intentions of Toudai to her counselor, she had been signed up for after-school courses, and had been pressing much harder into her schoolwork. Of course, she wasn't alone in this.

It was Saturday, around midday, and she had made her way to the Hiiragi household for a study group. "Ayano, come on in!" Kagami exclaimed, answering the door.

"Good afternoon, Hiiragi-chan. Is Takara-san here yet?" Ayano bowed, and slid off her shoes. Stepping into the household, she bowed to Kagami's older sisters, Inori and Matsuri. "Thanks for having me."

Inori bowed, and Matsuri gave a small wave. "Hey, no problem. You're here all the time. Hey," she added, and it seemed as though a light had clicked on in her head. "Kagami, is this the girl who-"

"Shut up, Matsuri," the elder Hiiragi twin growled. She motioned for Ayano to follow her. "Ayano, Myuki-san's in my room, come on."

As they passed the living room, Ayano took time to bow to Tsukasa, and their parents. "Thank you for the hospitality," she said politely.

"Oh, Ayano-san, welcome!" Tsukasa greeted, bright and cheery as ever. But something seemed a little, forced. The Hiiragi parents nodded and smiled politely, but the father turned quickly back to his paper, and their mother stared wistfully off in the general direction of the TV.

"Um, Hiiragi-chan, is something the matter? Everyone seems… tense," Ayano noted as they stepped into the bedroom. She exchanged greetings with Miyuki, then sat down.

Kagami groaned. "Well, Misao dropped by earlier, and, oh, Miyuki, you were here. You explain it to her. But let me tell the last part, ok?"

Takara nodded, looking a bit uneasy. "Well, it began earlier this morning, when Kusakabe-san had dropped by to pay a visit, and let out some steam. She's still very upset that you broke up with her older brother, it seems."

Ayano sighed. "I'm not surprised. She hasn't said word one to me all week."

Miyuki nodded. "So it seems. Well, she had begun very adamantly expressing her disapproval, when Kagami had asked her to calm down. The three of us had retired to this room, to talk in private. Kusakabe-san said, 'I can't believe that traitor could just up and leave him like that'," upon seeing Ayano's expression, she added, "But I may be remembering incorrectly!"

Kagami smiled. "That's sweet, Miyuki, but we might as well be honest. Look, it's not just you she's upset at. I happened to let slip a piece of information while we were hanging out a couple of weeks ago, and Misao hadn't quite recovered."

Ayano tilted her head. "What would that be?"

Kagami blushed. "I'll get to that. See, after we'd calmed her down a little bit, I told her you were coming over, and that we needed to study. She got upset again, and stormed out. But not before making a scene in front of my entire family."

_Earlier that morning:_

Kusakabe stomped down the hall, making her way to the door. The sheer volume of her commotion brought the entirety of the Hirragi family into the hall, to witness the event. "Misao, would you calm down? We're just going to study!"

"So you're taking her side on this? I can't believe you! Way to go, me, I get to pick out the worst friends ever! A traitor and a lesbian, that's awesome!" Misao shouted, then realized an instant later what she had said. And who her audience was.

The hallway grew silent, and all eyes turned to Kagami, who was shaking in place, tears forming in her eyes. "Misao, I trusted you not to tell. You promised. I… I…"

"Hiiragi, I'm sorry, just calm down, and-"

"Get out!" Kagami shrieked, pushing her friend out the door. "Get out, get out, get out! If you're brother's anything like you, it's no wonder she dumped him. Out!"

_The present:_

"And that's basically that'" Kagami explained. "So now you know the truth. And my family's been on edge since. Almost immediately, they sat me down, and gave me a talking to. My sisters didn't seem to care, but my dad doesn't really approve. I know my mom supports me, but with me and my dad… it's just stressful on everyone if any two people in the family are fighting. Tsukasa's been doing her best, but I know she doesn't want to take sides. And my mom can't. Miyuki voiced her support, and made some good arguments, which I think is one of the only reasons he hasn't kicked me out of the house. I just thought you ought to know. Ayano?"

Ayano stared at Kagami for awhile, not blinking. She barely had the thought process to remind herself to breath. Something had clicked in her. "S-so you're… gay?"

Kagami sighed, and gave Ayano an earnest look. "I know it's hard to swallow, and it's not really acceptable in Japan nowadays, but I can't really change it. I just hope we can still be friends."

Ayano was still a little thrown off, and something in the back of her head was processing a new thought, but she remembered what her parents had taught her. "Kagami, you're my friend. I'm not going to think any differently of you because of who you are," she said softly. Then something clicked. "What did Matsuri mean by 'that girl'?"

Kagami gritted her teeth. "I'm gonna kill her. Alright, I guess I have to explain some more. Um, Miyuki-san?" she turned to the pink haired girl, who simply nodded and stepped out. She noticed Ayano's confused expression, and explained, "I had asked her earlier that if this subject came up, I didn't want to talk about it in front of her. I'm not really ready for that yet, but, you need to know."

Ayano felt a little nervous. "Know what?"

"During my conversation with dad, more like a shouting match, really, but after in winded down, he had asked me how I figured it out. I told him that I'd fallen for a certain girl at school. Which is why I was even more upset with Misao today," Kagami sighed, and glanced down at the table.

"So… so you like Misao, right? I'm guessing her betraying your trust like that must have hurt so much more…" Ayano reasoned.

"No, it's not like that. I can see where you're coming from, but I wasn't additionally upset that she had exposed my secret to my family. What upset me more than it would have was her insulting you," Kagami told her, looking up slightly.

Ayano processed the info. "So, so you mean-"

Kagami nodded. Then she arched her back slightly, sitting up, and steadied herself. Looking Ayano square in the eye, she announced, "Ayano Minegeshi, I love you."

Ayano wasn't really sure what happened after that. She recalled a blur of motion, then a sense of pressure. When she fully grasped the situation, she was leaning into Kagami's arms, and kissing her. She leaned back slightly, at first, thoroughly confused.

"Ayano," Kagami breathed. "So you…" she trailed off.

"I guess so. I mean, I know so. I'd been telling myself that it wasn't the case, that I didn't like you that way, but I do. That's why I dumped Kusakabe. And after I told my parents about that, they'd said that no matter what, if it made me happy, if it was something I loved, they'd support me. I guess that flipped some kind of switch. And hearing you say that, those words…"

"It was the last step, right?" Kagami grinned. "So, what do we tell everyone?"

Ayano mulled that over for a second. "Let's worry about that later," she answered finally, and returned to kissing the girl she loved. Then she broke apart for a second.

Kagami looked concerned. "Ayano, is something wrong?"

Ayano shook her head. "No, I just realized I forgot to tell you something."

"What's that?" the twin-tailed girl asked.

"I love you, too."

Miyuki sat in the hallway, trying very hard not to eavesdrop on her friends, but was becoming bored quickly. "Um, Hiiragi-san? Can I come back in now?" she asked quietly, unaware that the two girls were oblivious to everything right now. "Hiiragi-san? Hiiragi-san?"

Author's Note: Yay, fluff! I just felt like doing a pairing I don't get to see very often. For those of you waiting for updates on my other stories, it's going to be awhile. I may put out a few more oneshots to tide you folks over, though.


End file.
